Ford lists a time of 10.6 seconds for a 0-100-0 mph run for the upcoming GT500. That is a blistering spec.

Here are times from other cars for the same run. Note that the 0-100-0 time is higher than just piecing together 0-100 and 100-0 times. Chart is from Mustang6G. The GT500 posted the second best time of all the cars listed. Amazing...

I don't know...that's pretty heady company. Is this a Ford claim, or has it been verified?

It’s a Ford claim, I suspect it might be like the Demon’s sub 10 second run 1/4 mile run, it can be done under the very very correct conditions but not easy to do. Still even if most drivers can only do it in 11.5 seconds that’s still crazy awesome.

It’s a Ford claim, I suspect it might be like the Demon’s sub 10 second run 1/4 mile run, it can be done under the very very correct conditions but not easy to do. Still even if most drivers can only do it in 11.5 seconds that’s still crazy awesome.

I can't say for sure because Ford fires people who find out these things without permission, but I CAN say that one of these Mustangs *cough the blue one with the Carbon Fiber Track Package cough* feels like it can do that no problem...

I'm sure there will be all sorts of car magazine types who will set about verifying that claim, once the GT500 is out and about (which let's hope is VERY SOON).

We haven't finished breaking them all yet, but we ARE getting pre-/pilot-production ones now and not the hand-assembled pre-pre-production ones to play with, making October-ish my guess for anyone but special "long-lead" heavyweights like C/D getting an "officially done-ish" one.

I want--nay, need--to believe that I ended up with the "one of these things is not like the others" Mustangs because they needed expertise only I possessed in driving the "high performance" four-banger with an automatic. Or they only had two GT500s that needed testing, and I was lucky to get a Mustang to drive at all. Yeah! Glass-half full!

Wednesday - And then there were five. Sadie had a tumor under her tongue, of all places (and probably other places as well), which is why she was losing weight and not eating well. The doc said it was time to let her rest, so we did.

She may have been a grouchy ol' puddy cat, but she was OUR grouchy ol' puddy cat ... and she'll be missed.

Wednesday - And then there were five. Sadie had a tumor under her tongue, of all places (and probably other places as well), which is why she was losing weight and not eating well. The doc said it was time to let her rest, so we did.

She may have been a grouchy ol' puddy cat, but she was OUR grouchy ol' puddy cat ... and she'll be missed.

Sorry for your loss. Pets are truly like family. I'm a single guy with my own place, and if anything happened to my crazy doggo I'd be devastated.

That orange I would think belongs on a McLaren, wouldn't it? The red and green have a lot to recommend them both. I like the idea of a REALLY DEEP BLUE, something along the lines of what my T-Bird SC was, perhaps even deeper.

Regardless (and again excepting the back), the new mid-engined Corvette looks to me like a winner and more: an ACCESSIBLE winner!

That orange I would think belongs on a McLaren, wouldn't it? The red and green have a lot to recommend them both. I like the idea of a REALLY DEEP BLUE, something along the lines of what my T-Bird SC was, perhaps even deeper.

Regardless (and again excepting the back), the new mid-engined Corvette looks to me like a winner and more: an ACCESSIBLE winner!

An international collaboration is claiming to have created hybridized human-monkey embryos in China. Disturbingly, the research could result in monkeys capable of producing human organs for transplants, leading to a host of ethical concerns.

A researcher involved in the experiment, biologist Estrella Núñez from the Catholic University of Murcia (UCAM), confirmed the achievement to Spanish news site El País. The project is being led by Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte, who runs a lab at the Salk Institute in the United States.

Few details are known, but the experiment, in which the researchers created chimeric, or hybridized, human-monkey embryos using human stem cells, is “an important step towards [Izpisúa Belmonte’s] final goal of converting animals of other species into factories of organs for transplants,” reports El País. All hybridized embryos were destroyed after 14 days, and no monkey was produced during the experiment.

Regrettably, Núñez leaked these details to El País prior to the publication of a formal study. That said, she described the results as “very promising,” and said the paper is currently pending peer review in a “prestigious international scientific journal,” reported El País.

Below is some pieced excerpted text from the article at the link above.

An Audi Q7... "driven by a 'boy racer' who was chasing a Porsche" ... "caused more than $600,000 in damage after losing control of his vehicle and plowing into a row of luxury cars parked in London's affluent Chelsea neighborhood earlier this week." ... "Video footage of the scene shows that the driver had run out of skill mid-chase and lost control of the vehicle, reportedly striking a total of 11 cars with a combined value of more than $1.2 million, including a McLaren MP4-12C, Porsche Cayenne, and Bentley Bentayga." ... "at least three of the cars were declared total write-offs."

"Police were called to Moore Street at 0031hrs on Monday August 5 following a collision between a car and number of parked cars." ... "One woman revealed that three of her vehicles had all been damaged; a McLaren, a Porsche and a Bentley." ... "the street, on which the average house is worth £4.5million" (US$5.4M) ... "Elizabeth Neville, a vicar’s wife, said she was woken by the sound of the collision."

The pieced quoted text above was excerpted from the article at the link further above.

Note that a Vicar's wife and presumably the Vicar live on that street. That vow of poverty seems to be working out well for them. Not sure how large is his flock, but he seems to be living well on the wool that he shears from those sheep.

"Police were called to Moore Street at 0031hrs on Monday August 5 following a collision between a car and number of parked cars." ... "One woman revealed that three of her vehicles had all been damaged; a McLaren, a Porsche and a Bentley." ... "the street, on which the average house is worth £4.5million" (US$5.4M) ... "Elizabeth Neville, a vicar’s wife, said she was woken by the sound of the collision."

The pieced quoted text above was excerpted from the article at the link further above.

Note that a Vicar's wife and presumably the Vicar live on that street. That vow of poverty seems to be working out well for them. Not sure how large is his flock, but he seems to be living well on the wool that he shears from those sheep.

The biggest surprise went to the congregation who only have seen them in a Mini.

(John Paul George and Ringo) got on the Rooftop and the Band began to play.

Ok, so it was meant to parody Sgt Peppers. But today is the 50 year anniversary of perhaps the Beatles finest album. Abbey Road. And they are releasing a new digitally remastered box set (including vinyl, Loren) to celebrate the occasion. I understand that they even brought back a White VW Beetle to the infamous street where the Fab Four are crossing in the Zephyr (as Sir Paul once called it). Having once worked a week with him, I am excited. Although musically, I thought Sgt Peppers may have shook the music world more when they first heard the beginning of Side two. Have you ever watch the famous concert on top of the Abbey Road building? I always wondered how much of the old persons irritations were real. I would “dig it like a Pony”. I remember when McCartney recreated that excitement on top of the NBC studios in New York and shut down the whole street on Jimmy Fallon. (Correction- David Letterman had the show and it was at the Ed Sullivan theatre which is where they made their US debut).

The EMI TG12345 MK IV 40 channel analog mixing/tracking desk used at Abbey Road Studios from 1971 to 1983 sold at a Bonhams auction in 2017 for $1,807,500. Producer Mike Hedges had obtained it 1983 when the studio equipment at Abbey Road was renovated in 1983.

That is really cool. And analog! Have not heard that word in anwhile. Bonhams? Is that spelled and related to the late Led Zepelin Drummer, do you know? Thanks for the photo. I would love to hear that remastered Box Set on a system like Loren’s. In vinyl, of course.

That is really cool. And analog! Have not heard that word in anwhile. Bonhams? Is that spelled and related to the late Led Zepelin Drummer, do you know? Thanks for the photo. I would love to hear that remastered Box Set on a system like Loren’s. In vinyl, of course.

The EMI TG12345 MK IV 40 channel analog mixing/tracking desk used at Abbey Road Studios from 1971 to 1983 sold at a Bonhams auction in 2017 for $1,807,500. Producer Mike Hedges had obtained it 1983 when the studio equipment at Abbey Road was renovated in 1983.

Wow, what a neat mixing desk. It only vaguely reminds me of the Neve board that I worked on for a couple years, back in the mid-70s, and that was 100% analog as well. Man, those were some heady days!

Been thinking for a few days if I should say something here. Not that many people know, not even my mom and my best friends because I’m still trying to get over it. Still not sure if I’m going to tell anyone who doesn’t already know.

We have been trying to have a kid for years and nothing. Just when we are about to give up because we are not getting younger, she told me she’s a few weeks pregnant, on my birthday, last week.

Fast forward to the past weekend, she told me she needs to go to the hospital.

We still can’t confirm if she’s having a miscarriage but yesterday, her family doctor said judging from her symptoms, most likely.

That is really hard. Many women do blame themselves, they shouldn't but they do. Wanting to have kids but not being able to for what ever the reasons is a hard burden to bare. I wish there was something that I could do to help, has she considered finding a support group or something? Other women dealing with the same issues could perhaps help her not feel so guilty? I am really sorry for you guys though, thanks for being willing to open up about this. If there is anything any of us can do please let us know.

My thoughts and prayers as well. About 15 years ago, my partner took a fall down some steps in Portland Oregon and was unconscious and bleeding severely when I arrived at the Emergency Room. We lost our daughter, and she no longer was able to conceive. I took family leave to stay with her and her best friend (our neighbor) was also always available. It was hell to get through, and she was very headstrong and being from a large prolific Venezuela family had this stigma that she was no longer whole. It took a lot of time to heal, but with mine and Kim’s support, and God’s Grace, although not forgetting, she was able to move past that terrible night. It will be hard for her, but it sounds as she has a great Husband and family and friends to walk with or carry her if needed. Stay strong, for both of you.

As you know age is not your friend. Our daughter arrived in my wife's late 30's. We tried for more but it was not to be.

My parents were first unsuccessful trying to conceive. They were on the verge of adoption when my brother was conceived and born. After failing to conceive again they were told a fallopian tube problem was the cause and they resigned themselves to having an only child. Twelve years later I came down the tubes and a year and a half after that my first sister came along. At this point they thought they were done but 3 1/2 years later my second sister arrived as their final happy accident with my mom in her early 40's.

The process is difficult but you just never know. We'll all think good thoughts for you and your wife going forward.

Thanks and sorry about your loss. I'm sure we will get pass this but it's affecting me more than I thought it would.

My mother--who has been a nurse longer than I've been alive--would tell people in similar situations that I was a "be careful what you wish for." After three-plus years of trying, she was told that for whatever reason pregnancy wasn't in the cards for her. Therefore her becoming pregnant with me a few weeks after the dire news was quite a shock, but a good one. When my "due date" of January 30th came and went (and went and went), it was somewhat less so. They finally dragged (not an exaggeration; I have the forceps mark next to my eye to prove it) all ten pounds of me out on what she calls the "least romantic Valentine's Day ever."

She had access to years of her own medical knowledge, plus that of the finest doctors and consultants in one of California's largest health care organizations, all of which said there was nothing that could be done. Then she'd point to a picture of me and say that only meant nothing that THEY could do. The divine, fate, luck--whatever you want to call it--is in charge. Not you. Therefore that which happens isn't your "fault." Give love, mourn the loss, and shift the burden off your shoulders as it never belonged there.

To paraphrase the old saying, the difficult the universe does at once; the impossible takes a little longer...

My mother--who has been a nurse longer than I've been alive--would tell people in similar situations that I was a "be careful what you wish for." After three-plus years of trying, she was told that for whatever reason pregnancy wasn't in the cards for her. Therefore her becoming pregnant with me a few weeks after the dire news was quite a shock, but a good one. When my "due date" of January 30th came and went (and went and went), it was somewhat less so. They finally dragged (not an exaggeration; I have the forceps mark next to my eye to prove it) all ten pounds of me out on what she calls the "least romantic Valentine's Day ever."

She had access to years of her own medical knowledge, plus that of the finest doctors and consultants in one of California's largest health care organizations, all of which said there was nothing that could be done. Then she'd point to a picture of me and say that only meant nothing that THEY could do. The divine, fate, luck--whatever you want to call it--is in charge. Not you. Therefore that which happens isn't your "fault." Give love, mourn the loss, and shift the burden off your shoulders as it never belonged there.

To paraphrase the old saying, the difficult the universe does at once; the impossible takes a little longer...

Damn, man, I can't imagine how rough that has been on the two of you. Please tell her NOT to blame herself for this. It's not as though she had any conscious control over it ... BUT ... if she caught once, she MIGHT be able to catch again, and with more attentive monitoring, manage the whole 40-week sublease!

Next week, I'll be on vacation. I'll actually be taking an officially unofficial personal day tomorrow. I'll get the lawn mowed and some other odds and ends before we depart early Saturday morning.

I'm not sure that I've ever mentioned it here, but one of the things I'm trying to accomplish in this short trip we all have is to get my picture in front of every state capitol. I currently have 19. The wife and I will be embarking on an epic road trip and get 8 more. Those would be: Richmond, Raleigh, Columbia, Atlanta, Tallahassee, Birmingham, Nashville and Frankfort. I'll then have the entire eastern seaboard wrapped up. It's ambitious, but I'm looking forward to it. Upon our return, I will be headed to Indianapolis for work, so I'll grab another then.

I'll probably be a little scarce on the RBT during the sojourn. I'll try to check in from time to time, however, and post a pic or two. Wish me luck!

Friday - I think my gal spent more time in pre-op and recovery than she did under the knife. Cataracts out, new lens in, and so far, pretty good or so she reports. Had a nice get-together after with her aunt and some friends that evening, which put a nice capper on the day.

Friday - I think my gal spent more time in pre-op and recovery than she did under the knife. Cataracts out, new lens in, and so far, pretty good or so she reports. Had a nice get-together after with her aunt and some friends that evening, which put a nice capper on the day.

Glad that the eye procedure went smooth. That is the one area that would scare the hell out of me. Continued prayers until it is complete.

Don’t mess with Bill Gates. He can be a mean one. I remember when he and the President of Sony went at it over their games. It was bloody and violent. And those tats he had on his chest when he ripped of his shirt. Nothing but math theorems and formulas.

Finally, for the first time, drove the SM2 bronze bomber at Lime Rock yesterday. It was decent as my best times were in the low 1:03's. Put a championship winning Miata driver (Jonathan Goring) in for 5 laps and he got down to 1:02:75 on well used tires.

The car isn't really taking a set into corners the way it should and bumps seem to affect steering more than we'd like. Replacing the shocks and camber adjustments should make it more user friendly.

All things considered a good first outing. Managed 81 laps over 4 sessions. The motor feels good but not spectacular. Won't know how competitive it is until we run the undercard Miata races during the Historic's at Lime Rock at the end of the month. Will hopefully get some of the needed tweaking done before then.

I did not know that. Strangely enough, I own three different versions of Echoes: the original on Meddle. a shortened (~14 minutes) version from a Best Of compilation album, and a live version on a David Gilmour DVD. That last one just sets you on your ass...wow!

Seriously weird that you never drove it. Afraid of putting miles on it?

It was fun, but it was lowered and our streets aren't great, because it was lowered (presumably anyway) the springs were pretty stiff and it wasn't a great ride, didn't have power brakes, and had a pretty poor turning radius for the wheel base with no power steering. It just wasn't an easy truck to drive. The previous owner had done a appraisal in 2003 and it had 72,xxx miles on it. I sold it today with 76,xxx miles on it.

I've (or my wife I should say ) been buying a bottle of whiskey pretty much every time my wife passes by duty free. My favourite is still the 18 year old Glenfiddich. I need to get her to buy me a bottle of 21 year old.

Monday - My gal and I did something we haven't done for a very long time: go out for a Sunday drive, this time up Chagrin River Road, not quite to Willoughby, then east a ways before heading back south to home. An ad-hoc decision then took us west to Carabba's and what turned out to be a really good din-din.

Watching Simone Biles totally OWN the US Gymnastics Championships was the cherry on top.

Al, if you're going anywhere near Burlington, VT, there is an excellent steakhouse you need to visit: The Windjammer. I discovered it on my first trip there back in 1982, and if anything, it's only gotten BETTER with the intervening years.

As a born-and-raised Silicon Valley-ian (I rep San Jose for life, baby!) this comes as no surprise. I had a house built in Hollister, which seemed a world away from the Valley price- and space-wise.

If you want to see how insane the housing market has gotten, compare the Google Earth and Maps/Street View images for said house [1111 Jacqueline Drive, Hollister, CA, 95023]. Not only did they obviously convert the two-car garage into some kind of living space, the walnut orchard and fields that existed behind my large yard's fence are now neighborhoods (and the yard shrank to almost nothing to cram another house in).

It was already an hour-and-a-half commute between that house and my job in San Jose. I can only imagine what it must be now with at least five times the number of potential commuters...

I can beat that, but DO NOT try to verify my claim. MTV had/has (?) a show called "My Super Sweet Sixteen" wherein that--and symbolically-worse things--happened all the time.

I say don't verify that because it will result in you having to buy another of whatever you watched even parts of it on because you will destroy it out of equal parts rage that these entitled *expletive deleted* creatures exist and that they have purse-string-holders that enable them.

Amen to that. I guess this chap wasn't that smart. He did want a Jag over a Bimmer. My late dad owned a few British Fords and we all know British cars don't do well with SE Asian temperatures (especially the cooling system).

Hey everyone. Sorry I've been so quiet lately, there's just been too much going on. Going to try to replace the timing chains in the GTI tomorrow, and if I can get to it, clean the carbon out of the injector ports. Probably the biggest job I've attempted so far.

Sorry to hear about everything Loren and LEGO. Hope you guys are doing alright.

Loren, Ford is stealing your precious’ namesake. They are going to raffle off a Bullitt Mustang.... painted in Kona Blue and are advertising that it will be the only Blue Bullitt in the world. Ya better tell them to change it to Kona Bullitt.

And then there is this Near Modesto Ca, on Highway 120 (the road to Yosemite). Yes, that is a C8 and it was involved with two other cars, both in the top picture; the Red Ford Ranger and a white Chevy Equinox (top right corner same picture) which the C8 took its left rear wheel off of the SUV

Tuesday - All good things come to those who wait, and in this case, that "good thing" is a 4k copy of Avengers: Endgame which I mean to get sometime today. I've got a guy coming around to scope out my garage door (it's been a bit funky coming down on one side), and after that, off to Best Buy.

Oh, the embarrassment!! I've been spouting off about visiting state capitals, not only here, but elsewhere too. I'm currently sitting in an Air BnB in Montgomery, AL. You know... The capital of Alabama. I had a total mental block going, and insisted it was Birmingham. No idea why. All of my pre-saved driving directions, and the directions to the place we are staying are for Montgomery. So, why I got turned around, I'll never know. I just hope you all can find it in your hearts to forgive me my error.

Oh, the embarrassment!! I've been spouting off about visiting state capitals, not only here, but elsewhere too. I'm currently sitting in an Air BnB in Montgomery, AL. You know... The capital of Alabama. I had a total mental block going, and insisted it was Birmingham. No idea why. All of my pre-saved driving directions, and the directions to the place we are staying are for Montgomery. So, why I got turned around, I'll never know. I just hope you all can find it in your hearts to forgive me my error.

Wednesday - Got Endgame mid-yesterday-morning and cued it up ... and it remains the same kick in the teeth that it was the first time I saw it. If nothing else, it was a brilliant accomplishment in screenwriting and the execution of that writing, and if there aren't Oscar nominations for screenplay and direction in the wings, something is SERIOUSLY wrong.

As for the garage door, the tech found bum rollers, frayed wires, and one broken spine on a panel, which he reinforced. Was a few bucks to correct, but would have been a lot more if we hadn't caught it.

U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has banned some recalled MacBook Pro laptops on flights due to batteries causing an elevated risk of fire. I would suspect those batteries could likewise pose elevated risk elsewhere.

You already couldn't check ANYTHING with Li-Ion batteries (and air cargo shippers require you have no more than a 30 percent battery charge), and the Feds issued a 90-page warning suggesting not doing it at all months ago: